Entry-Level Physical Therapy Program

(845) 398-4800, extension 6049 or fax: (845) 398-4892

The program is fully accredited by CAPTE. (Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education)  
CAPTE, 1111 N. Fairfax Street, Alexandria, VA 22314;  
phone (703) 684-2782.  

The role of the physical therapist is an exciting and challenging one. Using therapeutic intervention, the professional helps to improve the quality and satisfaction of the lives of diverse clients throughout the life span. Clientele may include children with disabilities, victims of trauma, and seniors with generalized weaknesses. Working with pa-tients, caregivers, and other health care professionals, physical therapists promote the achievement of their patients’ goals by fostering their recovery. The focus of therapy may consist of programs to in-crease strength, to relieve pain, and to assist one to achieve optimal function in the environment.  

Physical therapists also serve as teachers, providing important instruction in a wide array of areas, including on-going rehabilitation in the activities of daily living, prenatal and post-natal programs, and overall fitness and health promotion. Physical therapists can work in a variety of fields, such as rehabilitation, community health, industry, sports, private practice, neonatal intensive care, school, research, education, and administration.  

Entry-level physical therapy program 

The entry-level physical therapy program is an accredited full-time weekend program dedicated to preparing motivated graduates to become skilled, ethical and respectful doctors of physical therapy with  a commitment to evidence-based practice, lifelong learning and service. Through a strong science foundation and a challenging yet sup-portive environment, congruent with the mission of Dominican University New York, graduates are prepared to deliver the highest standards of practice and leadership to meet the ever-changing societal needs related to movement, function and health.  

The Program’s goal is to graduate autonomous physical therapists who are able to provide professional services by addressing the needs of the "whole" client in an ever-changing health care environment, in addition to serving as teachers, consultants, researchers, and administrators.  

Dominican University New York offers a Physical Therapy Program leading to

1. two degrees, Bachelor of Arts in Biology (Pre-Med) and Doctor of Physical Therapy, for the traditional or transfer student in a combined 3 + 3 (over 10 trimesters). Refer to entry-level Doctor of Physical Therapy Professional Sequence.
2. a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree for the student who has already earned a baccalaureate degree

Completion of the Doctoral portion of the Physical Therapy degree requires each student to complete 99 credits in ten trimesters over 3.3 years.    

The professional courses are scheduled on a trimester system — sum-mer, fall, winter/spring. The Doctor of Physical Therapy Program meets eight weekends per trimester. Each instructional weekend includes all-day Friday, all-day Saturday, and all-day Sunday.  On occasion, students may be asked to come in during the week to fulfill academic requirements (e.g. Field trips to hospitals, proficiency checkouts, Capstone testing, etc.). There are various learning experiences (e.g. open labs, proficiency checkouts, student-driven group work, student/faculty meetings, etc.) during the instructional week-end. It is mandatory that students are regularly available during that day. The four full-time clinical affiliations, totaling 36 weeks, are scheduled during the regular work days of the facility. During the full-time clinical affiliations, weekend classes are scheduled to pro-mote learning and integration of physical therapy skills. Working is not permitted while performing a clinical affiliation due to the high demand of a full-time clinical affiliation and coursework. The non-traditional format schedule allows a student to continue part-time employment, to maintain family responsibilities, and to pursue other interests. Students are cautioned, however, that long work hours are incompatible with success in the Program, which requires extensive study time, and that the Program cannot consider competing work obligations as a substitute for the maintenance of academic standards. In particular, an absence for more than 1/8 of the total contact hours in any professional course, for any reason, will result in a failing grade. Absence of the first day of class will also result in a failing grade. Acceptance to the program is contingent that the accepted student attends the new student orientation.    

Admission to the Entry-Level Doctor of Physical Therapy  

To apply to the program, applicants must hold a baccalaureate degree in any field. The baccalaureate degree must be completed prior to the start of the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program.   

The following prerequisites must be completed prior to admission to the entry-level Doctor of Physical Therapy Program. 

Prerequisite courses are offered by Dominican University New York in a traditional semester-based weekday schedule. Although the pre-requisite courses may be taken at other accredited colleges or univer-sities, preference for admission to the Physical Therapy Program is given to the most qualified applicants who have taken 30 or more credits at Dominican.   

The overall grade point average, as well as in the prerequisites grade point average must be at least a (3.0), with no course grade lower than a C. However, depending on the applicant pool, it is common that the overall and prerequisite grade point minimum of the ac-cepted DPT students is higher than the 3.0 (e.g., the average of the incoming students have been 3.2-3.4 GPA). A 3.0 GPA. is also re-quired for the last 60 credits of the student’s most recent coursework as a whole.  

Applicants whose native language is not English must obtain a mini-mum score of 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language 
(T.O.E.F.L.) or 213 on the computer-based T.O.E.F.L. (C.B.T.).  

All candidates must apply online utilizing the APTA's Centralized Application Service (www.ptcas.org).  

Admission to Bachelor of Arts in Biology  (Pre-Med)/Doctor of Physical Therapy 

Dominican University New York traditional students and transfer stu-dents have the option to satisfy some of the requirements of the Bache-lor of Arts in Biology (Pre-Med track) while fulfilling the prerequisites of the Physical Therapy Program in the first three years of their aca-demic career. During Year Three, the student will make application to the Physical Therapy Program. The Biology degree must be completed with no grade lower than a C (2.0 GPA) in required science and math courses, and with the minimum average of 3.0 in all coursework. If the student is accepted, Year Four will consist of the final requirements of the baccalaureate program in Biology integrated with the first year of the Physical Therapy Program, following the weekend format.  

Students in this program will still need to meet all admission require-ments and formally apply to the Entry-Level Doctor of Physical Ther-apy Program as outlined in Entry-Level Admission Section.    

Upon successful completion of the biology requirements and the Physical Therapy curriculum, the student will be awarded the dual degree B.A./DPT (a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and a Doctor in Physical Therapy, respectively). Should an individual successfully complete the first two trimesters of the articulated Biology/Physical Therapy professional sequence, but not the remainder of the Physical Therapy Program, and if all other requirements for the Bachelor’s degree have been met, the student earns a Bachelor of Arts in Biol-ogy.  

Clinical Experience Admissions Requirement: 
In addition to the prerequisite courses, all applicants must document a total of 60 hours (100 hours is recommended) of voluntary or work experience in settings where a licensed physical therapist is employed. These hours must be completed in diverse healthcare settings providing exposure to therapeutic intervention across the life span.   

Deferment of Admissions to the Entry-Level Program: 
If an applicant is accepted into the program, but is unable to fulfill the requirements (e.g. submit deposits, attend orientation) to begin the program for that admission year, the applicant will be unable to defer their admission to a later date.  The applicant must reapply for the following year.    

Off-Site Requirements  

The Clinical Experience is a significant and critical component of the professional physical therapy curriculum. Students observe and are mentored by expert clinicians working in their respective specialized clinical settings. These experiences are concurrent with weekend classes.  

The physical therapy curriculum provides the student with four full-time clinical affiliations throughout the ten trimesters of study for a total of thirty-six weeks. During these four blocks of clinical practice, each student will have experiences with patients/clients across the lifespan in a variety of settings that en-compass a range of conditions from acute to chronic. The student’s clinical experiences will provide them with the entry-level knowledge and skills they need in the general practice of physical therapy.  

Capstone and Final Requirements  

To demonstrate ongoing competency and integration of the required minimal skills at specific points in the professional sequence, all stu-dents must pass the written and clinical lab practical capstone exami-nations that cover all material in the courses and learning experiences prior to the scheduled examination. Typically, the alternate week-ends are used for the capstone examinations. The first capstone written and clinical lab practical examinations are administered at the end of Year I Trimester 3. The second capstone written and lab practical examinations are administered at the end of Trimester 5 to demon-strate mastery of required minimal skills. The third capstone written is administered as part of the Professional Development class at the end of Year IV Trimester 10, at the end of all required course work of the professional sequence. Students are expected to achieve all  required CPI criteria to successfully complete all clinical affiliations.   

A student must pass both the written and lab practical capstone examinations in order continue in the Program. Only one retake of the Capstone Written and Lab Practical Examinations is permitted. Students who do not pass the capstone exams are subject to dismissal from the program.  

Procedures  

Advisement:

All students enrolled in the Physical Therapy Program are assigned a faculty advisor. Additionally, course coordinators/instructors will provide advisement related to specific course objectives, content and requirements, and professional development. The Director of Clinical Education (DCE) is responsible for advisement related to  
the Clinical Education Sequence and Clinical Experiences such as Clinical Experience I, II, III and IV. The Research Coordinator will also provide advisement concerning student research projects developed during the last two years of the professional sequence. Faculty will inform students of their office hours during course orientations, in the course outlines, and /or student advisement.  

When necessary, an Action Plan is used to develop appropriate strategies for students who either are not at the expected levels of Professional Behavior or where there is a marked discrepancy between the student’s self-assessment and faculty observations. Action Plans will be discussed and monitored during faculty meetings. An Action Plan may also be used as a written avenue to reach a learning goal or identified achievement (not remediation). The student will meet with the course coordinator/instructor or advisor to devise an Action Plan which will state the expectation to be accomplished within a specified time. The student is responsible for maintaining communication with the faculty advisor/course coordinator/ instructor regarding his/her ability or inability to master the objective.  

Residency:

The DPT Professional Sequence must be completed within 4.6 years (14 trimesters) to complete the program.   

Health:

All required health forms are to be completed and updated regularly and after any student health incident requiring medical attention. Evi-dence should be submitted at the beginning of each academic year in the Clinical Education sequence courses (Summer Trimester) and maintained electronically via the certifiedbackground.com.  
The Dominican University New York Physical Therapy Program faculty have developed a set of “essential functions.” “Essential function” refers to all nonacademic criteria used for admission and participation in a program. Essential functions are applied to all students and evolve with physical therapy practice. They are created so that students and practitioners can perform their job responsibilities in a safe and effective manner at a high standard. They are not established to discriminate against a person with a disability. The ability of a student to perform these essential functions, therefore, is a factor that will affect his or her acceptance to, progression in, and successful completion of the program. The extensive list of the essential functions may be requested from the PT program.   

Leave of Absence:

A student may request a leave of absence from the Program, which, when granted, permits the student to return the following academic year without applying for readmission. The student must first request permission from the Program Director and provide supporting documents for their request. To be official, this request must be submitted in writing to the Registrar once approval from the Program Director has been attained.  

Students who have been away from the University for more than one year must reapply and restart the program from the beginning.  

Withdrawal:

Except in unusual circumstances, a student who wishes to withdraw from a course without academic penalty may only do so within a prescribed time frame; the symbol "W" will be entered on the transcript when the approved withdrawal occurs before two-thirds of the sched-uled sessions of the course or prior to the start of the 6th weekend of the trimester. The course instructor and the Program Director must be informed prior to the student’s intended withdrawal. See the section above regarding requesting a leave of absence before submitting a with-drawal request to ensure that a student’s seat in the program is held.  

Insurance:

While enrolled in the DPT Program, students are required to maintain currency in the following: individual professional liability insurance (with the coverage of at least one million dollars per occurrence/three million aggregate), APTA student membership, and CPR and First Aid certification.